Continuous tabulating card strip



July 31, 1962 G. D, I YALL ET AL CONTINUOUS TABULATING CARD STRIP 2Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 18, 1960 INVENTOR s ffm@ M ATTORNEYS 2Sheets-Sheet 2 G. D. LYALL 'ET AL CONTINUOUS TABULATING CARD STRIP July31, 1962 Filed Feb. 18, 1960 IN VENTORS ATTORNEYS ite tastes Thisinvention relates to tabulating cards or the like and to methods ofmanufacture and assembly of such cards into continuous strips,

The gene-ral object of the invention is the provision of a novel andimproved continuous strip or web of tabulating cards and the provisionof a method of assembly which results in a better product which isuniform in thickness, in a speedup of production, and in a saving incosts.

Printed tabulating cards, each of which is machine inscribed withindividual data, are used in tremendous volume today, and it isessential to quantity handling that the user have available elongatedstrips of such cards for speedy continuous writing. However, principallydue to extreme dimensional precision which the use of tab cardsrequires, the production of a satisfactory continuous strip of cards andthe use of such strips have presented problems.

As a preliminary to a detailed exposition of the present advance in theart, it would be Well to discuss certain peculiarities of thesetabulating cards which make them and their manufacture sui generis inthe paper making arts.

As manufactured, all paper yand card stocks have the grain of the fibersrunning in the direction of Web flow through the paper making machine,and this is also the direction of movement of the web through acontinuous rotary printing press by which the preliminary textual matteror indicia is impressed upon the series of forms lcomprising the web orstrip.

Ilt is recognized that papers, card stocks `and the like inherentlyencounter dimensional changes when subjected to changes in relativehumidity of the surrounding atmosphere. The dimensional changes referredto hereinafter are based upon a relative humidity increase of from 20%to 75% with 73 F. temperature, these being the conditions frequentlyused for prescribing the maximum allowable dimensional change for cardstock used for tabulator operations.

it is further recognized that dimensional changes in paper or cardstock, due to changes in relative humidity .of the surroundingatmosphere, are much less in the paper grain direction than in thedirection at right angles to the grain. rlhe most popular dimension oftabulating cards is probably `the 7% x 3% size with the longer dimensionextending widthwise of the card. Each card must be susceptible of havingas many as eighty columns of data widthwise thereof, with many or all ofthese columns to be punched with tabulating machine brush contactapertures. This permits only about thirty-two thousandths of an inc-l1of lateral space between the apertures.

Now with the aforementioned relative humidity conditions, if the grainof the card is parallel with or along the shorter dimension of the card,the dimensional change in the longer dimension of the card will be about0.051", Whereas if the grain is parallel with the longer dimension ofthe card, the dimensional change in that longer direction is only about0.015".

Therefore, unless the grain of the paper-stock extends in the longer orwidthwise direction of the card, the dimensional change would beprohibitive in attempting to accommodate say eighty contact apertures`along the card. Thus, the cards must be made With the grain extendingwidthwise thereof. A l

This has been recognized in the' prior' art and cards have been producedin a continuous web of a width of a single card and then the individualcards severed and reattached along their upper and lower margins toprovide another web for passing vertically and continuously through thewriting machines for the entry or imposition of the data. This is a timeconsuming and rather expensive expedient and Ithe present invention hasfor one of its objects the eecting of economies in both -time andexpense in producing these cards, together With providing a superiorproduct, as will be more fully set forth in the following specification.v

Another object of the invention is to improve the tabulating card webproduct in facilitating its passage through typewriting. or tabulatingmachines by increasing the uniformity of thickness of the web. In priormethods, the reattachment of the severed cards along their upper andlower edges has been effected simply by overlapping these edges of thecards and securing them together by the application of adhesive. This ofcourse produces a double thickness at the junctions of the successivecards and results in a build-up of thickness and an increased rigidity,

which can cause feeding -difiiculties in the writing machine and damageto the product while the strip or web is passing through the restrictedthroat area beneath the platen of the machine. The double thicknessoverlapping area is ordinarily too rigid toconform to the arc of thesurface of .the platen. Thus, troublesome accidental dctachment of thecards at the severance lines has resulted and occasionally the adhesivehas failed to take hold at these junctions.

Also, the overlapping thickness in the prior art assemblies ymultipliesgreatly at both `fold ends of a zigzag folded pack of continuous cardsto such an extent that proper packing in a shipping carton to preventtransit damage is difficult.

Even more important is the fact that the above-mentioned multipliedthickness at the fold ends of the zigzag pack, reduces greatly thenumber of cards which the continuous pack can contain for safepackaging, and this, in turn, reduces substantially the number of cardswhich can be continuously written without stopping the writing operationfor installing additional packs in the writing machine.

These difficulties and drawbacks have been obviated or greatly reducedby the provisions of the present in vention whereby the edges of thecards are rabbeted by the novel process disclosed herein so that theoverlapping edges secured by adhesive are reduced in thickness andbetter adherence of the adhesive is insured.

Gther objects and features of novelty will be apparent from thefollowing specification when read in connection with the accompanyingdrawings in which one embodiment of the invention is illustrated by way0f example.

In the drawings:

FEGURE l is a diagrammatic plan view of a finished and strippedtabulating card illustrating the general type of article involved andgraphically presenting the need for minimizing the dimensional changesdue to variations in relative humidity;

FIGURE 2 is a diagrammatic plan View of the oncoming end of a web ofcards proceeding from a printing press, the direction of movement beingthe same as the direction of extent of the grain of the paper stock;

FIGURE- 3 is a similar diagrammatic plan view of a further step in themanufacture and assembly of the novel tabulating card strip Where theleading terminal group of cards has been severed from the web and thenreattached to the upper margin of the next group which has replaced thefirst group through the progress of the web toward the right; y

FIGURE 4 is a similar view showing a further stage in the progress ofthe web;

FIGURE 5 is a diagrammatic view in perspective of a portion of asuggested apparatus for effecting the rabbeting of the web edges, thecard web in this view being greatly enlarged for purposes of clarity ofillustration;

FIGURE 6 is a diagrammatic view in end elevation of two grindingstations for rabbeting the opposite faces of the side edges of the web;and

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged transverse sectional view of the joint betweenthe sets of cards in the ultimate web, as taken on line 7-7 of FIGURE 4.

The ultimate tabulating card as shown in FIGURE l at 10 may be taken asan example of the nal product of typical items of this sort, when theproduct is ready for tabuiating use in a tabulatiug machine, whethermade in accordance with the present invention or not. T he marginalscrap borders have been stripped away and only the bare card remains.

These cards 19 are usually of a dimension approximately 7%" wide by 31Ahigh. The columns of printed indicia indicated at I2 may be of anydesired character, the ones partially shown in FIGURE l being typical.Within each of the columns 12 there are impressed rectangular apertures15, one or more for each column, these apertures being for the purposeof providing contact for the tabulating machine brush elements toproperly sort or account for the data on the cards. In a card of thistype there are as many as eighty of such apertures along the longerwidthwise dimension of the card indicated by the arrow A.

Now if the grain of the paper stock and also the direction of runthrough the press had been in the direction indicated by the arrow B,that is, in a vertical direction as viewed on the card 10, the lateralor widthwise dimensional change of the card, when subjected to theaforementioned relative humidity conditions, would have amounted toabout 0.051 and this would have caused at least some of the apertures 15to be displaced an amount which would throw the operation of thetabuiating machine out of proper functioning.

It is therefore necessary or highly desirable in the production of thesecards to insure that the direction of feed through the printing pressand the direction of the grain of the paper extend as indicated by thearrow A, namely, widthwise of the card, whereby the expansion orshrinkage due to the aforementioned relative humidity change would be amaximum of only 0.015", which alteration would not atiect the shiftingof the terminal apertures 1S an intolerable degree.

In prior methods, the cards have been run through the press in thedirection of the arrow A in single file, and the end cards have beensevered and then attached along the upper and lower edges to thesucceeding cards and a new web created which would run vertically of theindividual cards or in the direction of the arrow B.

As previously pointed out, this adds considerably to the cost ofmanufacture and creates a double thickness junction between the cardswhich is deleterious and actually destructive to the strip in thepassage through Writing machines and the like.

In accordance with the present invention, the initial web is sentthrough the printing machine in multiple arrangement of say four cardsabreast, these cards being numbered 1a, 1b, 1c, and 1d in the first row;2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d in the second row, and so on. The production of awider web of this character results in a saving of time in producing theultimate right-angled strip and also a saving in adhesive which in thecase of large production is a considerable factor.

The paper or card web as it passes through the printing press, issubjected to a rabbeting process which is clearly shown in diagrammaticfashion in FIGURES 5, 6 and 7 of the drawings. This initial webdesignated 20 passes over an anvil roller 22 carried upon an axle 23driven in any suitable manner and synchronized with feed rollers fordrawing the web through the device. Adjacent the appropriate margin ofthe web 20 there is disposed an abrasive wheel 25 carried upon a shaft26 driven by a motor 27. The abrading edge surface 28 of the wheel 25may be of any suitable edged metallic construction or abrasive stonecomposition and the distance of the effective edge 28 of the wheel fromthe surface of the anvil roll 22 is accurately set to just one-half thethickness of the web 20. The wheel is thus adjusted at the edge of thestrip to rabbet this edge out at a depth of one-half of the thickness ofthe card and to a lateral extent equal to the desired overlap of thecards in the ultimate web, as indicated at 30.

Obviously either the device or the web has to be inverted in order tocut the rabbet at 31 upon the opposite edge of the web 20. One way ofaccomplishing this is shown diagrammatieally in FIGURE 6 of the drawingswhere the web Z0 passes down an anvil roller 22' and a grinding wheel 25which will cut the rabbet 31 and thence passes between the anvil wheel22 and the grinding wheel 25 for cutting the rabbet 30 shown in FIGURE5.

Proceeding from the stage depicted in FIGURE 2 of the drawings to thatillustrated in FIGURE 3, it will be seen that the first row of cards 1a,1b, 1c, and 1d is severed from the strip 20 and as the strip 20 movesforwardly, that is toward the right in these figures, the severed stripis moved upwardly and the bottom margin of the card 1d is overlapped atthe rabbeted edges with the similarly rabbeted edge of card 2a asclearly indicated at in FIGURE 3. Then the portion of the strip 20cornprising the cards 2a, 2b, 2c, and 2d is severed from the advancingstrip 20, moved upwardly and similarly joined to the next row byadhesively securing the lower edge of card 2d to the upper edge of card3a as shown at 37 in FIGURE 4. Thus a new tabulating card strip 50 isformed to extend and be fed in a direction at right angles to theoriginal web 20.

The junction of the cards is shown very clearly in the enlarged view ofFIGURE 7 which was taken on the line 7 7 of FIGURE 4 and -which showsthe card 1d secured to the card 2a at the junction 35 whereby a layer ofadhesive is interposed between the overlapping flanges of the adjoiningcards.

Not only is much less adhesive used in this instance since it isunnecessary to join the cards 1a, 1b, 1c, and 1d etc. together, but theadhesive effects a firmer grip in uniting the card edges since theground surfaces of the rabbets 30 and 31 are of a slightly irregular orrougher and more porous texture than the nished partially glazed surfaceof the card as it comes from the paper making machine. This enables theadhesive to penetrate somewhat more effectively and insures a strongerbond.

The ultimate result of the provisions of the present invention not onlyinsures the use of less adhesive, and the more effective bonding by theadhesive, but also the necessity of joining only every fourth cardrather than each successive card.

Adhesive aixation is inherently a relatively slow operation, goodadhesives are costly, and therefore worthwhile savings both in time andmoney are attained by the more eflicient method presented by thisapplication. Of even greater signiiicance is the fact that the chance ofaccidental and very annoying breaking apart of the adhesive jointsduring the continuous writing operation, is actually reduced fourfold.

At the same time the invention effectively eliminates the troublesomethickness build-up and increased rigidity at the junctions of the cardswhich, as pointed out above, gives rise to diculties in passing theultimate web around the platen of a writing machine, and in folding thecards into zigzag packs for safe transportation, and more importantly,the more frequent time wasting installing of zigzag packs in thecontinuous writing machine as encountered with the conventional product.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desiredto be secured by Letters Patent is:

l. The process for making and assembling a tabulating machine punch cardstrip or the like consisting of a series of multiple card unitsyattached edge to edge, which process comprises preparing an initial webof card stock with the grain extending longitudinally of the web inconventional manner, delineating on said web the outlines of tabulatingcards in multiple alignment across the web as well as longitudinallythereof, with the dimension of said cards along which is to extend the-longest projection of contact orifices disposed in alignment with saidgrain, rabbeting the opposite side edges of said web on respectivelyopposite surfaces thereof to a depth equal to approximately one-half thethickness of the stock and in such manner yas to somewhat roughen therabbeted areas, severing the forward terminal multiple card unit fromthe web, applying adhesive to the relatively rough rabbet areas,rejoining the severed unit to the next succeeding unit of the web hyoverlapping one rabbeted edge of said severed unit with a rabbeted edgeof said next unit, and then severing the next unit from the web andsuccessively repeating the rejoining ofthe severed units, whereby theresulting assembled strip comprises a series of tabulating cards withthe grain extending transversely of said strip.

2. The process `for making and assembling a tubulating machine punchcard strip or the like consisting of a series of multiple card unitsattached edge to edge, which process comprises preparing an initialcontinuous elongated web of card stock with the grain extendinglongitudinally of the web in conventional manner, delineating on saidweb the outlines of tabulating cards in longitudinal series of stripunits each unit comprising a series of cards, which series of cardsextends transversely of said web, with the dimension of said cards alongwhich is to extend the longest projection of contact orifices disposedin `alignment with said grain, running said web in the direction of itslength, continuously rabbeting the opposite side edges of the runningweb on respectively opposite surfaces thereof to a depth equal toapproximately one-half the thickness of the stock land in such manner asto somewhat roughen the rabbeted areas prior to severing the web, andcontinually severing the respective forward terminal multiple `cardunits from the web, applying adhesive to the relatively rough rabbetareas, rejoining the respective severed units to the next succeedingunits of the web by overlapping one rabbeted edge of a severed unit witha rabbeted edge of the next unit, whereby the resulting assemhled webcomprises a series of tabulating cards with the grain extendingtransversely of said strip, most of the cards integrally joined, and theIfewer adhesively connected joints offering no diiiculties in thepassage of the completed web around the platen of a writing machine orin zigzag pack folding.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,049,523 Sponable Aug. 4, 1936 2,700,556 Hohnwood Ian.y 25, 19552,794,726 Riedesel et al June 4, 1957

